Tour a schooner, watch a lobster-hauling demonstration, listen to live music, and take part in a slippery fish race during the 25th annual Camden Windjammer Festival, Aug. 31-Sept. 1. More than a dozen schooners will parade into Camden starting at noon, Aug. 31. The day includes a silent auction for dinner aboard a Maine Windjammer Association vessel that night, radio-controlled boat races in the harbor, a downtown treasure hunt, the Nautical Dog Show, an outdoor concert and whimsical talent show (put on by windjammer guests and crews) 7-9 p.m., and fireworks. After a pancake breakfast at the Camden Rotary Club, watch the Lobster Crate Race, when competitors try to race across a line of crates and avoid falling into the harbor, and the First Fish Relay Race, when teams toss slippery fish into a boat’s hold and then compete in a relay race. Then take a rare tour of a windjammer Sept. 1, 3-5 p.m. www.camdensnowbowl.com/cwf

Camden Foreign Car Show

The 17th annual Camden Foreign Car Show will be held from noon to 3 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 2. The show is sponsored each year by the Mid Maine Sports Car Club and features pre-1990 British and European sports cars and saloons. All drivers of such cars are invited to show their vehicles by registering at mmscc.com. Registration fee is $10 for club members, $25 for non-members; pre-registration is required and is limited to the first 50 cars registering online

The Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce is pleased to announce that it will once again present a Treasure Hunt as part of the Camden Windjammer Festival schedule of events this Labor Day weekend. The Treasure Hunt will begin at 10 a.m. sharp on Friday, Aug. 31, starting on the deck of the Chamber Visitor Center, located at 2 Public Landing in Camden.

The Treasure Hunt will be open to 8 teams of up to 5 people each, on a first-come, first-served basis. The activity, which will lead teams to various locations throughout the downtown Camden area searching for clues, will be suited for all ages, though children under the age of 14 must be accompanied by at least one person over the age of 18. Registration will take place at the Chamber Visitor Center between 9 and 9:30 a.m. The Treasure Hunt will officially begin at 10 a.m. sharp, and all teams must report back to the Chamber Visitor Center no later than noon with their collected items. Points will then be tallied and the winning team will be declared at 12:30 p.m.

The Treasure Hunt will provide participants with fun facts about Camden’s maritime history, the Maine Windjammer Fleet, nautical terms, seafaring lore, and of course, treasure! The team that completes the Treasure Hunt with the most accumulated points will win a prize package of items donated by Camden merchants, and best of all, bragging rights for being the best treasure hunters of 2018. For more information, contact Amy Rollins, member services director for the Chamber, at Amy@CamdenRockland.com.

NEWS FLASH:

She’s been the voice and the energy behind the Maine Windjammer Association for decades. Yet, after 30 years, 42 bosses and thousands of windjammer guests, Maine Windjammer Association Executive Director Meg Maiden is passing the wheel and being honored for her legacy…

Meg Maiden Honored with Lifetime Appreciation Award for 30 Years of Service to Maine Windjammer Association.

Rockland — The Maine Windjammer Association, North America’s oldest fleet of commercial sailing vessels, kicked off the 2018 sailing season by presenting its Lifetime Appreciation Award to Meg Maiden, the association’s executive director, from Blue Hill, Maine. After nearly a 30-year legacy, Maiden is passing the wheel on to two new people who will succeed her in managing the association’s activities, but as schooner American Eagle Capt. John Foss said, “No one can replace her.” Maiden was presented with a plaque handmade by Barry King, captain of the schooner Mary Day, photos from sailing photographer Fred LeBlanc, a bag handmade by former windjammer Angelique captain, Lynne McHenry, and created from Maine Windjammer pennants, and perhaps most appropriately, a cape made from the same pennants, notably honoring her “super hero” status in the eyes of the Maine Windjammer Association.

In 2015, the members of the MWA embraced the idea of creating a “Hall of Fame” to express their gratitude to the special people who have gone the extra mile to help the fleet. Previous recipients of the award include Gene McKeever of Allen Insurance and Financial in Camden, Wayne Hamilton of Hamilton Marine and Jim Sharp, founder of the Sail, Power & Steam Museum in Rockland. In 2018, Meg Maiden was the clear and unanimous choice of all the MWA members for the Lifetime Appreciation Award.

“Meg has been a consistent guiding force for the Maine Windjammers for nearly 30 years,” said Garth Wells, captain of the schooner Lewis R. French. “Working behind the scenes, she has enthusiastically and tirelessly promoted windjamming and the Maine coast — getting people from all over the country and the world to visit Maine and experience the thrill of sailing on a Maine windjammer. She kept a fleet of historic schooners alive and thriving and did it the right way. We were lucky to have her work with us for so long.”

Maiden started her maritime career at Wooden Boat Publications in Brooklin, Maine. From there, she moved to an ad agency in Blue Hill, where she was assigned to the MWA account in 1989. In 1993 she started her own PR firm, Maiden Enterprises, with the MWA account. She has worked as the association’s executive director for nearly 30 years, with small leaves of absences to start and raise a family.

Under her leadership, the MWA has secured media coverage in most major media outlets and publications, plus on popular TV programs like Travels with Samantha Brown and the Rachael Raye show. With supervision from Maiden, the Maine windjammers hosted the first (and only) Governors’ Regatta in 1997 with Govs. Angus King (Maine) and Steve Merrill (New Hampshire). In addition, a lobster bake aboard the schooner Victory Chimes was presented in New York City live on the Fox & Friends TV show, and as the Victory Chimes returned to Maine, a new message in a bottle containing an offer for a free windjammer trip for the lucky finder was released each day.

“We got a lot of calls from some very excited beach combers, and there are still a couple bottles floating around out there that could be redeemed anytime,” said Maiden.

During her tenure, the Maine Windjammer Association has received many awards and honors including most recently the 2012 Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber’s Beacon Award; the 2013 About.com’s Reader’s Choice awards for best attraction; the 2015 Governor’s Award for Tourism Excellence, and in 2017 Maine Windjammers received USA Today’s 10 Best Readers’ Choice Award, 2017, as the #1 attraction in Maine. In addition to these awards, Maiden was a founding partner of Experience Maritime Maine, a partnership of maritime organizations and businesses dedicated to preserving Maine’s maritime culture through tourism.

In looking back at the successes initiated by Maiden, Capts. Douglas K. and Lind J. Lee of the schooner Heritage said, “We know that Meg always did her best for the Maine Windjammer Association vessels and the captains/owners. She will be missed.”

Always at work, even while aloft on a boat, Meg Maiden smiles and is right at home. (Photo by Barry King)

“My time working with the Maine Windjammer Association captains has been incredibly rewarding and always changing,” said Maiden when prompted to look back at the past 30 years. “Whether communicating with our friends of the fleet by phone, mail or online through the years, we’ve welcomed tens of thousands of guests to the world of windjamming. We’ve celebrated maritime traditions with festive annual events and we’ve partnered with community organizations ranging from island trusts to local soup kitchens. Thanks to the loyal passengers who come back year after year, plus every season’s first-timers, this historic fleet will continue to offer guests the chance to unplug from their workday world and experience a rich, relaxing and restorative sailing tradition that can only be found along the coast of Maine.”

Maiden will be replaced by two part-time marketing professionals working together. Not new to working with the Maine Windjammers, Alisa Meggison, the association’s webmaster for the past six years, will also assume the administrative responsibilities of the executive director. Tourism PR and marketing professional Marti Mayne will take on the media, events and content management aspects of the job.

“Now, finally Meg can go boating this summer,” said Capt. John Foss.

The Maine Windjammer Association offers 3- to 11-day sailing adventures that allow visitors to experience an array of Maine’s attractions — from lobster and lighthouses to Acadia National Park and the many fine museums, shops and restaurants in Camden and Rockland, homeports for the fleet. For more information, visit sailmainecoast.com.

Ski the Sea

The Snow Bowl has that friendly small-town feel, and with nearly 1,000 feet of vertical elevation and more than 20 recently expanded runs, its pretty impressive as a seacoast ski resort.

Nestled among picturesque harbors, charming inns and award-winning restaurants, it is also the only ski area on the East Coast with ocean views.

Camden Snow Bowl

The Camden Snow Bowl is owned and operated by the
Town of Camden/Parks and Recreation Department.

Office Hours

Spring | Summer | Fall

Office hours:
Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Winter Mountain | Ski Season Hours

Wednesday, Thursday and Friday
10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Saturday & Sunday
9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Spring, Summer and Fall Venue

The Snow Bowl Lodge offers a great location for spring, summer and fall wedding receptions and rehearsal dinners, company picnics, small meetings, etc.

The lodge can handle approximately 100 people seated, with room for dancing and other activities. In addition, with the awning in place over a large deck, another 50 to 60 people can be seated comfortably outside.